Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1887-03-10
The Battle OF the aiilIionaires.


There is the liveliest kind OF news
paper discussion going on over the ques-
tion whether the Armour syndicate
intends to build oil mills in tine South, as
has been stated in the dispatches lately.
Some Of the papers say that there is no
doubt that the Armour syndicate is In
earnest about the matter, while others
insist that the only thing that Armour Ia
trying TO do is to get cotton seed Oil at mia
own price as an adulterant in his lard
| business.
There is no doubt that the Armour syn
dicate has secured charter in New Jer-
sey for company, and that there 10 no
| question about getting the necessary
amount of capital with which to build oil
mills, but there is reason for thinking
that it is not yet absolutely certain that
orders will be given for the building OF
mills. Mr.. II. .. Armour, speaking Tor
his brother, VINO is the head of the firm
OF Armour J. Co., said, in New York, on
| Monday: alt is our purpose to get cotton
oil RS cheaply as we can. Ii 1t can Dc
| produced cheaper than we can buy 1t we
| will produce It. The American Cotton
| Oh Trust named price at which they
would sell us oil, but this price we nave
refused to pay. We then offered them a
price at which we would buy oil from
| them. This offer they have declined"
The American Cotton Oil Trust Com
| pany is quoted as treating as nonsense
the published statements that there is
movement, engineered by Armour, 10 en-
! gage in competing with 1t in the manu-
facture OF cotton seed oil. A leading
member OF the company Is reported to
have made the following statement within
the last few days: "The Cotton Seed OIL
Trust Company manufactures about
0,000 barrels of oil a year. Mr.. Armour
uses about 80, 900 barrels. He has simply
adopted buldozIng tactics to get his oil
cheaper. 1t is true that the Oil Trust is
still negotiating with him, but if he thinks
he is to have all of the profit in the trans
actions be is nightly mistaken. What
does the company formed at Camden, N.
J., amount to? Butcher and the divers
sold their mills to the Oil Trust Company
last summer. 1t IS singular that they go
to New jersey to get their alleged charter.
1t would cost something in New York or
Pennsylvania to form com-
pany. 1t costs nothing in New Jersey.
Even if the company means business it
couldn't build it's mills in year and
couldn't possibly be ready for the next
crop. Armour talks about getting his oil
cheaper by building mills to manufacture
cotton oil. His position isn't logical, be-
cause IL he should build "a mill at Men,
phis, for instance, the Oil Trust Company
would Immediately advance the price for
seed, so that his oil would cost him more
than now. The Oil Trust Company has
mills in ten States. No, the truth is that
Armour started out to bulldoze some
body, and he ran up against people just
about twenty times more powerful than
himself"
The Oil Trust Company talks big, and
it undoubtedly is big monopoly. 1t says
pretty plainly to Armour, if the above is
true. that II he attempts to make cotton
seed oil the Oil Trust monopoly will ruin
his business. When it says that to Ar
mour. 1t also says in effect to the cotton
planters, that they must sell their cot
ton seed at whatever price the Oil Trust
chooses to pay for it or not sell it at all.
1t also says to the consumers Of cotton
seed products that in future they will
have to pay Tor these products exactly
what the Oil Trust chooses to ask for
| them.
1t is probable that Armour is not
alarmed so much about the price he will
have to pay for cotton seed oil as he is
about the alleged intention of the OIL
| Trust to engage in the manufacture of
lard. AS cotton seed oil is largely used
IN the manufacture OF lard, the Oil Trust,
by controlling the price of the oil, could
monopolize the business Of manufacture
| ing lard Armour scents danger to his
| legitimate business, and that, perhaps, is
what is making him SO uneasy.
1t is probable that the boast that the
Oil Trust is much more powerful COM
pany than any which Armour can organ
ize, though he controls millions, is not
without foundation. Its richest stock
holders include such men as John V.
| Lewis, a Cincinnati millionaire; the
RockafeIlers, of the Standard Oil Com
| pany, and n. X. Fairbanks, also a mil
| lionaire. 1t will probably be some time
before 1t will be known definitely whether
| or not the Oil Trust is to have competi-
| tim